The RizqX team at the Venture Z competition
RizqX, a Singapore-based startup dedicated to halal investments, recently achieved a notable feat by securing the second position at Venture Z, a global startup competition held during the 2nd International Conference on Sustainability: Development and Innovations (ICSDI) 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
With competition from 318 teams across 40 countries, RizqX showcased its commitment to financial inclusivity in Singapore and Southeast Asia (SEA).
The startup focuses on empowering Muslims to make informed financial decisions following Shariah principles. By consolidating a diverse range of Shariah-compliant investment options from global institutions into an all-in-one platform, RizqX provides users with detailed reviews and educational resources, currently featuring 44 live investment options as of February 2024.
The driving force behind RizqX is its diverse four-member team, led by Managing Director Muhammad Ridhwaan Radzi, a finance industry veteran with over six years of experience and a Certified Shari’ah Advisor and Auditor (CSAA) certification; COO Muhammad Nur Salihin Bin Samsudin, with a background in Public Policy and Management, oversees operations, governance, and administration; Syed Hafiz Bin Salim Alsree, the CTO, leads product development as an Aerospace Engineering major at Imperial College London; and Foong Yan Kai, the CMO, manages marketing and partnerships, leveraging his studies in Linguistics and Multilingual Studies at NTU and prior experience as a freelance PR and content consultant across various sectors, including fintech and edutech.
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The company sees its success at Venture Z, which underscores its dedication to promoting financial inclusivity within the framework of Islamic finance, with a robust platform and a team of experts navigating the complexities of halal investments.
In an email interview with e27, Muhammad Ridhwaan Radzi, CSAA, Managing Director, RizqX, explains more details about the company, the market they are targeting, and their plans for the future.
The following is an edited excerpt of our interview with him:
What are the particular challenges Muslims in Singapore face in accessing financial services? How does your solution help them?
Muslims in Singapore are looking for investments that are both Shariah-compliant (or we call it halal) and provide reasonable returns.
However, these halal investments are often scattered and underpublicised by nature. Halal investors have difficulty screening and finding halal investments when there’s more information about non-halal investments in the market. This makes halal investments, both public and private, get lesser awareness.
Adding on to the scattered nature of these investments, it is challenging for Muslims in Singapore to have a holistic comparison of available investment options as such a comprehensive platform or resource is unavailable. This lack of consolidated knowledge hinders investors from making informed decisions.
I have been exploring and understanding halal investments for the last 10 years and have experienced the challenges faced by the community. Hence, I want to ensure that public and private halal investments get the recognition they deserve and that Muslim investors can grow their wealth harmoniously with their beliefs. This led me to start Islamic Finance Singapore (IFSG), Singapore’s largest organically grown Islamic Finance in 2018, and now RizqX, a fintech gateway to halal investments, in 2023.
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Can you explain more about the user profile you aim for? What is your strategy to acquire them?
Our primary users are Muslims in Singapore (and SEA) seeking to grow their wealth in line with Shariah principles. They want to ensure that their choices are aligned with their religious beliefs – they do not wish to compromise their religious principles while seeking financial freedom.
A 2022 report noted that 61 per cent of SEA halal consumers find Shariah compliance a crucial factor for banking or investment products. We aim to reach out and acquire these users directly through the established Islamic Finance Singapore (IFSG) network. Furthermore, we will provide resources (articles and guides on our website and short-form content) and opportunities such as events and webinars to allow users access to the knowledge they seek.
Our secondary users are retail investors seeking better-performing investment options, as Halal investments are not limited by religion. If we compare the S&P 500 and the S&P 500 Shariah Index, the halal option outperformed in the usual years.
What is your product development process?
We are developing the investment platform as a web application in three main stages: We have completed Stage One and started onboarding users last weekend to experience the product and provide feedback.
In Stage One, we provide a consolidated selection of halal investments, both public and private. We provide a profile of each investment and additional articles and guides aimed at educating investors. The information provided is suitable for all levels, from beginner to advanced. While we have listed the 44 options, we continuously improve the profile writeup and find new halal investment opportunities.
The subsequent stages include a comparison feature to evaluate various investment opportunities, a personalised dashboard where investors can monitor their investment and a community forum. We are looking to develop the comparison and community forum features next to allow the community to have a platform to seek and share their knowledge on Islamic Finance.
Also Read: Ethis Group, Gobi Partners to launch Shariah-compliant US$20M seed fund
What other innovation do you have in the pipeline?
Down the pipeline, we are exploring Zakat 2.0 and Halal 2.0. Zakat 2.0 is a new way to conduct your alms while considering the multiple halal investments available. Halal 2.0 explores a new stock screening methodology that combines Shariah and ESG screening.
What is the prospect of Sharia-based financial services and investment in Singapore?
Singapore’s Islamic Finance landscape has been changing rapidly. If we look at 10 years ago, most of the halal investments and Islamic financial services you see currently were not available.
Now, we see many players and opportunities entering the Lion City rapidly – a Malaysian bank shared its plans to establish Singapore as a regional wealth management hub; a Singapore wealth app recently obtained Shariah certification to ensure their offerings are easily accessible to the Muslim community.
With more awareness from the stakeholders involved, we foresee more products and services manufactured outside of our country entering the market and being accessible to Singaporeans.
What is your major plan for 2024?
For 2024, we have two main focuses – product development and user acquisition.
We are incubated and funded by NTUitive, Nanyang Technological University’s innovation and enterprise company. We seek grants to develop the app further and fix any potential blind spots. Through these grants, we aim to complete Stage Three of our current development process. We also aim to increase the awareness of RizqX as a solution provider for halal investing for Muslims in Singapore and SEA.
In short, we hope to establish the foundations of RizqX in 2024, so it can flourish in the years to come.
Do you have plans to expand beyond Singapore?
We perceive Singapore as the launchpad for effective expansion throughout the region. We believe that SEA has a huge potential as Indonesia alone has 240 million Muslims. Therefore, that’s our vision for the next five years: to expand from Singapore to SEA.
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Image Credit: RizqX
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